Grain aspirator



April 21, 1936. Q Q GRAY ET AL 2,037,719

l GRAIN AsPniAToR riginal Filed May 24, 1950l 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTORSCARL C. GRAY HARRY L.

April 2l, 1936. Q c, GRAY ET AL GRAIN ASPIRATOR original Filed May '24,1930 2 sheets-sheet 2 m -Sb INVENTORS C A RL C. GRAY BY HARRY ..JOH/VSONATTORNEY Patented Apr. 21, 1936 PATENT OFFICE GRAIN ASPIRATOR Carl C.Gray, Minneapolis, and Harry L. Johnson, St. Paul, Minn.

Original application May 24, 1930, Serial No. 455,233. Divided and thisapplication October 24, 1932, Serial No. 639,283

13 Claims.

This invention relates to grain cleaning machinery, and the primaryobject is to provide a highly novel, ecient, and practical aspiratingmechanism for removing relatively light foreign matter, such as dust andchaff, from granular materials such as the ordinary small grains, whichare preferably aspirated before being subjected to separating and otherprocesses.

This application is a division of our parent application Ser. No.455,233, led May 24th, 1930, for Grain scalping and aspirating machinepatented July 1'7, 1934, No. 1,966,443.

In the drawings, forming part of the present application Fig. 1 is afront elevation of the machine with fractional portions broken away forpurpose of illustration.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged sectional' elevation on the line 2 2 in Fig. 1.

The above noted views correspond generally to Figs. and 9, respectively,of the drawings in the parent application to which reference has beenmade.

Referring to the drawings more particularly and by reference characters,A designates a large enclosure or main housing within which theaspirating action takes place. This housing includes a pair of end walls3 and 4, a front wall 5, a rear wall B, top extensions "I of said walls,an irregular bottom plate 8 9, joining to form a catch trough IU, and asecond bottom plate II, forming a trough I2. A partition plate I3,having a rearwardly inclined extension I4, extends down from the top 1,While a second partition or division plate, I5, extends upwardly fro-mthe plate 9. The lower end, IIi, .of the plate I5, slopes forwardlytoward a corresponding but reversely sloped extension I'I of the wall 5,to thus form a throat or opening I8. Adjacent the opening I8 the platesI6 and Il are preferably provided with angular reinforcing flanges I9.It will no` doubt be understood that all of the members 5 to I9,inclusive, extend the entire length of the machine and have end contactwith the walls 3 and 4.

The end wall 3 has a circular opening 20, between the plate members 8and I3, and adjacent to which wall 3 is a blower housing B containing acentrifugal| blower 2| mounted on a shaft 22. This shaft has a pulley 23driven by a belt 24 from a pulley 25 on a power shaft 26. The fanhousing B has an opening, as at 21, and when the fan is in operation itwill cause a flow of air to pass outwardly through the opening andthence through the housing B and outlet 21. This outlet 21 is of coursepreferably connected to a tubular conveyor so that the dust and chaifmay be deposited at a suitable point remote from the machine. Thisaction, by reason of the suction created in the rear part of the housingA, will cause an air current to flow up through the 5 opening I8, overthe baille I5, under the plate I4, and thence to the opening 20, all asindicated by arrows.

Grain (or such other material as the machine may be used for) isintroduced to the aspirating 10 mechanism for treatment by a l'ong feedscrew 28 on a shaft 29. This screw extends into and receives its supplyof material from a chamber or hopper 30 which is in turn supplied byother mechanisms, contained within associated housl5 ings C and D, asmore fully set forth in our parent application.

'I'he feed screw 28 operates in an elongated open bottom trough 3|formed by a pair of relatively movable side walls or plates 32 and 33,hav- 20 ing support rods 34 pivoted at their ends in the end walls 3 and4, so that the plates are free to swing on longitudinal pivot centers.In order to insure simultaneous and similar swinging actions to bothplates I provide the coordinating device shown at 35, and this devicealso serves to close the top of the trough chamber 3I.

As the grain is conveyed longitudinally through the trough 3|, by thefeed screw 28, its weight upon the lower inclined portions of the plates32-33 tends to spread them, but this tendency is offset in part by aweight 36 adjustably secured to an arm 31 on one of the rods 34. 'Ihusit will be seen that the size of the opening, 38, between the loweredges of the plates 32-33 will vary ac- 35 cording to the volume orweight of grain accumulated about the feed screw 28 in the trough 3|.

As the grain in the trough 3| falls in a curtainlike stream from thelong opening 38 it falls upon 40 an angle iron stream divider 39 whichis rigidly secured at its ends in the housing walls 3 and 4. Thisdivides the grain stream into two sheets or parts and deflects themoutwardly to the plates IIi-II, which in turn dellects them inwardly 45again so that the grain will pass through the opening I8 and fall uponthe catch plate I I. From the catch plate II the grain finds its way tothe trough I 2 from which it is removed by a conveyor screw 40 ona'shaft 4 I, receiving power from with- 50 in the associated housings Cand D. It may here also be noted that the trough or settling chamber I0also has a feed screw, 42, on a shaft 43, for conveying away materialdeposited therein.

When the machine is in use the blower 2| and 55 .of air through theopening I8.V

feed screw 28 are of course driven simultaneously, with a result thatthere is a current of air flowing through the machine, over thepredetermined circuitous course already referred to, while the grainfinds its way from the trough 3| to the trough I2.

As the air is drawn in from the outside over both the front .and rearedges of the plate Il, it passes upwardly through the opening I8,whereupon it divides into two currents, one passing. up between themembers I6 and 32, while the other passes up between the members I1 and33. The two air streams then again join, passing over partition I5 andthence under the baille wall I3-I4 and to the blower housing.

The force of the air current may be regulated to meet varying grainconditions in various ways, such as by modifying the speed of the fan,but we prefer to not disturb the fan speed, and to modify the aircurrent through I8 by providing an auxiliary air inlet opening "43 inthe top of the main housing A. The size of this opening is controlled bya door 44, one end of which is supported for vertical adjustment on alink 45 that connects with a crank arm 46 of an adjustable shaft 41.This shaft may be oscillated in any suitable manner, one method beingillustrated in Fig. 2 of our parent application. As the door 44 isgradually opened the inrushing air will of course partially relieve orreduce the current drawn upwardly about the aspirator trough 3|.

In the aspirating process proper, as it occurs under vthe trough 3l, thecurtain-like stream or ow of grain discharged from the opening- 38strikes .the angle iron divider 39 and as it is deflected thereby thetwo streams of grain immediately come in contact with the strong upwardflow This air current, coming in from both sides (as seen in Fig. 2)does not merelyshunt the grain stream to one side as would ordinarily bethe case if only one air stream were employed, but thoroughly difusesand agitates the grain so that the air has an opportunity to reach andremove every particle of dust and chaff vfrom the grain.

It will also be noted that the gap between the lower ends of the platesI S-I'I is less than the combined widths ofthe spaces between the platesI5 and '32, and 5 and 33, and consequently the air stream, as it passesup through the opening I8, is more violent than when it reaches the lessrestricted spaces above. As a result of this arrangement it is found, inpractice, vthat the grain is subject to a violent whirlpool actionimmediately above the opening I 8 and only drops down Ytol the catchplate II after having been thoroughly air cleaned in the whirlpoolaction noted.

As the grain gravitates from the cleaning zone the relatively lighterlparticles, such as dust and chaff, are carried over the partition l5 andfollow with the air current under the baffle I4 to the blower. Theheavier of these particles, however,

'may include some smaller grains and seed Worth salvaging, and these aresaved by beingshunted into Vthe settling chamber I0, as they will not so.separating mechanism all as more particularly 'shown and described inour above noted parent :'application.

Obviously various modifications and changes may be made in the,construction of .our machine as above disclosed without departing fromthe spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the claims. Havingnow therefore fully shown and described a preferred embodiment of theinvention, what we claim is:

l. A grain aspirating apparatus comprising a chamber having `anelongated horizontally disposed restricted bottom opening for admittingan upward flow of air, a grain trough disposed horizontally within thechamber and having a bottom opening for discharging grain directly abovethe chamber opening, means for causing an upward flow .of air throughsaid chamber opening, said `4trough being disposed between and spaced atboth sides with respect to opposite side walls of the chamber and alsospaced below the top of the chamber so that the flow of air upwardlythrough the chamber opening will be deflected and divided into twoseparated currents passing one at each side of the trough and reunitingin thel space above the trough.

2. A grain aspirating apparatus comprising a chamber having a restrictedbottom opening for admitting an upward ow of air and an upper opening toexhaustsuch air, a grain trough disposed centrally within the chamber soas to provide separated lateral air passages between its ides andopposite side walls of the chamberand spaced below said upper opening topermit air from the lateral passages to reunite in the space above thetrough, said trough having a discharge opening disposed above thechamber opening, said chamber opening being more restricted as to crossYsectional area than that of the lateral passages combined whereby theforce of the air flow will be decreased after passing through thechamber opening, and means for creating and maintaining said air flow.

3. A grain aspirator comprising a vtrough formed of hingedly mountedside plates the lower edges of which are yieldingly pressed toward eachother but sufficiently spaced apart to form a longitudinal dischargeopening, an air current creating device, and means for directing'twofaircurrents toward each other whereby they Ywill meet and come in contactfrom vopposite sides of the grain being discharged from the troughopening and thereafter divide and pass upwardly about both sides of thetrough.

4. A grain aspirating apparatus comprising a chamber having inwardlysloped bottom members spaced at their lower ends to provide a passagefor an upward flow of air anda downward flow of grain, a grain supplyreceptacle disposed within the chamber, above said passage andl spacedfrom the` side walls of the chamber so as to divide the upward air flowinto two separate streams, and means for dividing the flow of grain fromthe receptacle to said passage into two lateral streams whereby saidstreams may respectively come into cleaning contact with said two airstreams. Y

5. In an aspirating apparatus the combination including a chamber havinga bottom opening for an upward flow of air, a receptacle in said chamberVand spaced from opposite walls thereof to divide said air flow into twostreams, said receptacle having a discharge 'opening for providing aflow of grain downwardly through the chamber opening, means formaintaining an upward flow of air through said chamber opening, andmeans for dividing the grain flow intotwo streams as it leaves thereceptacle.

6. In an aspirating apparatus 4the combination including a chamberhaving a bottom opening for an upward flow of air, a receptacle in saidchamber and spaced from opposite walls thereof to divide said air flowinto two streams, said receptacle having a discharge opening forproviding a flow of grain downwardly through the chamber opening, meansfor maintaining an upward iiow of air through said chamber opening,means for dividing the flow of grain from the receptacle opening intotwo streams, and means for reuniting the grain streams as they aredischarged through the chamber opening, whereby air flowing up throughsaid chamber opening will traverse each grain stream twice.

7. In an aspirating apparatus the combination including a chamber havinga bottom opening for an upward flow of air, a receptacle in said chamberand spaced from opposite walls thereof to divide said air flow into twostreams, said receptacle having a discharge opening for providing a flowof grain downwardly through the chamber opening, means for maintainingan upward iiow of air through said chamber opening, and a stationarydivider member having inclined surfaces for dividing the grain flowlaterally as it leaves the receptacle.

8. A grain aspirating apparatus comprising a housing through which airis drawn from a bottom opening to an initial treating chamber, means forproducing the air ow, a grain receptacle disposed entirely within saidchamber and spaced from the top and sides thereof so as to divide andpermit reuniting of the air iiow therethrough and for discharging grainto said opening, and a passageway for conducting air from the top ofsaid chamber, said receptacle having its top Closed to prevent materialconveyed by the air now from falling into the receptacle.

9. A grain aspirating apparatus comprising a housing through which airis passed from a bottom opening to an initial treating chamber, meansfor producing the air flow, a grain receptacle disposed entirely withinsaid chamber and spaced from the top and sides thereof so as to divideand permit reuniting of the air flow therethrough and for discharginggrain to Said opening, and a passageway for conducting air from the topof said chamber, said receptacle having its top closed to preventmaterial conveyed by the air iiow from falling into the receptacle, andmeans for feeding grain horizontally into the receptacle from one endthereof.

10. A grain aspirating apparatus comprising a horizontally disposedchamber having a longitudinally extending opening in its bottom forminga passage for an upward flow of air and a downward iiow of grain, andsaid chamber having an air outlet opening in its upper end, means forproducing an air current through said chamber, a grain supply receptacleextending from end to end within the chamber and having a longitudinalbottom opening disposed directly over said chamber bottom opening, saidreceptacle being spaced from the bottom, top and side walls of thechamber so as to divide the air flow upwardly from the chamber bottomopening into two separate, substantially equal air currents, and meansfor feeding grain into said supply receptacle from one end thereof anddistributing such grain throughout the length of the receptacle.

11. A grain aspirating apparatus comprising a horizontally disposedchamber having a longitudinally extending opening in its bottom forminga passage for an upward flow of air and a downward iiow of grain, andsaid chamber having an air outlet opening in its upper end, means forcausing an upward air current through the chamber, a grain supplyreceptacle extending from end to end within the chamber and having alongitudinal bottom opening disposed directly over said chamber bottomopening, said receptacle being spaced from the bottom, top and sidewalls of the chamber so as to divide the air ow upwardly from thechamber bottom opening into two separate, substantially equal aircurrents, means for supplying grain to the receptacle, and means foradjusting the size of the receptacle opening to control the flow ofgrain therefrom.

12. A grain aspirating apparatus comprising a horizontally disposedchamber having a longitudinally extending opening in its bottom forminga passage for an upward flow of air and a downward flow of grain, andsaid chamber having an air outlet opening in its upper end, means forcausing an upward air current through the chamber, a grain supplyreceptacle extending from end to end within the chamber and having alongitudinal bottom opening disposed directly over said chamber bottomopening, said receptacle being spaced from the bottom, top and sidewalls of the chamber so as to divide the air flow upwardly from thechamber bottom opening into two separate, substantially equal aircurrents, and means for feeding grain into said supply receptacle fromone end thereof and distributing such grain throughout the length of thereceptacle, said receptacle being entirely enclosed, except for itsbottom opening, whereby to prevent grain or other matter from fallinginto the receptacle from the lateral air streams passing upwardlythereabout.

13. In an element of a machine of the kind described, the combination ofan air-chamber having an air-outlet at its upper part, an airinlet atits lower part, an air-inlet at its intermediate part, a container forcleaned seeds at its lower part, means for causing an upward aircurrentthrough the first said air-inlet and for causing a horizontalair-current through the second said air-inlet, means to introduce seedsinto said air-inlet of the intermediate part in such manner thatvtheseeds pass horizontally into the upward air-current so the lattercarries dust and light trash from the seeds and permits the seeds tofall into said container, a plate to guide a portion of the seeds intosaid container, and means to convey the seeds horizontally from saidcontainer.

CARL C. GRAY. HARRY L. JOHNSON.

